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This week we’re going to look at some of the many amazing details about the resurrection. There were so many witnesses. The resurrection wasn’t a small story made up under the conspiracy of Jesus’ earliest followers. On the contrary, there were so many people who saw Jesus after his resurrection. 1 Corinthians tells us that there were over 500 people…

Our Incredible Hope Propels Proclamation These women were the first witnesses and were the first commissioned to profess Christ’s resurrection. Their stunned amazement quickly turned to proclamation (Mark 16:7-8). They did not have time to soak in the wonderful reality of the good news that Jesus had risen, but they went immediately and announced it to the disciples. They…

Our Incredible Hope Exacts Excitement These women were amazed when they arrived (Mark 16:6). They came to the grave expecting to find Jesus’ dead body, but instead, there was an angel. Mark says they were “alarmed.” The word means to be utterly astonished or greatly amazed. It means to be moved to a relatively intense emotional state because of something causing great…

Our Incredible Hope Develops Devotion Pilate granted Joseph’s request and Joseph, along with the Pharisee, Nicodemus, took Jesus’ body and gave Him an honorable burial in a tomb that Joseph had bought. In verse 47, we see that the two Marys who had been with Jesus while He was alive and who were witnesses to His death on the cross had followed Joseph and Nicodemus and saw…

Our Incredible Hope Compels Courage The effect on Joseph of Arimathea was that of courage (Mark 15:42-47). Joseph had been a secret follower of Christ, and when Christ died he stopped hiding and courageously stepped forward to show his love for Christ. Joseph was a respected member of the Sanhedrin. He was part of the Sanhedrin that had conducted a ridiculous trial of…

This week we’re going to be taking a look at some of the wonderful effects of the Resurrection and the hope that it provides us. This week’s devotions come from Crossroads Bible College. Load-bearing walls support the weight of the house. You don’t take those down, because if you do the house will come tumbling down. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the…

Friday “If you hold fast to the word which I preached to you – unless you believed in vain” This is a verse often used to try and defend the idea that people can lose their salvation. The idea is that once you’ve been bad enough you are no longer saved and need to start all over. There are so many problems with that line of thinking we could do a week full of…

Thursday “and by which you are being saved” It’s easy to look back at years of faith and progress and to find pride creeping back in. We’ve come so far from where we were when Jesus found us, and it can be easy to grow content or even arrogant in that. We can turn our backs on others who might be in the same struggle we were in, but haven’t found the freedom we…

Wednesday “In which you stand” We stand in this gospel. We stand in it because we know it’s the truth. Often the enemy or even our own evil hearts can try to guilt us into a weaker position. We may have failed. We may still struggle. Yet, as long as we stand in the gospel we know we’re forgiven. God knows everything. He knows our greatest moments, our most cherished…

Tuesday “Which you received” When the gospel shows up, we are given a choice. No one is forced into the gospel, but instead God extends his invitation to us. He invites us to share in his love, grace, and forgiveness. By grace, through faith in him, the cross gives us the opportunity to receive everything Jesus has done for us. You have to receive it, though. This means…

This week we looked through 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 and how we can have confidence in the resurrection. What we’re going to dig through this week in our daily devotions is how that very resurrection and its validity changes everything. “Gospel I preached to you” The only way any of us know the gospel is through someone sharing it with us. There is this beautiful…

We love more. God’s love is infectious. You can’t help as you spend more time with him in his love to find that your love becomes richer and deeper for others. Less important than knowing all the books of the bible, singing all the words right, or even living a pure life is the way we love. In 1 Corinthians, we’re told that even if we had the most…